1. Technical Field
This invention relates to refrigeration devices and, more particularly, to a portable refrigeration system including a recirculating water chilling system. This system specifically addresses the need for an improved method of quickly cooling large volumes of hot foods such as sauces, stews, gravies, etc., in commercial kitchens and to the acceptable temperature for storage in a walk-in cooler or refrigerator.
2. Prior Art
In commercial establishments such as restaurants, bistros, hotels, bars, and the like, there is a need to store and chill large volumes of hot food until needed for reheating. One way of achieving this is to have large cool rooms or refrigeration cabinets where sufficient quantities of the product to be cooled can be stored so that the lowering of the temperature of the product can take place using standard refrigeration techniques. However, as most cool rooms are set to approximately +2 degrees Celsius, it can generally be expected to take some time for the food to be reduced to its desired temperature. Also, storing large quantities of hot food in walk-in coolers warms other food products locate therein. Such an effect is undesirable for obvious reasons. With restaurants and other similar establishments, this can give rise to significant problems.
Accordingly, in recent years, much emphasis has been placed on proper food storage temperatures in commercial kitchens. In fact, allowing food to linger in the so-called danger zone of 45 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit is one of the most common infractions cited by local health departments. Since many, if not most, restaurants generally prepare cooked foods ahead of time in comparatively large batches, this results in a need to quickly reduce them from comparatively high to comparatively low temperatures. Simply placing such items in a typical walk-in cooler is often inadvisable, as the compressor will encounter difficulty keeping up. This can result in such items taking longer than the mandated 6 hours to cool to 40 degrees, as well causing the temperature of any existing items in such a cooler to rise above a normally safe temperature.
Currently there are a variety of specialized quick chiller appliances on the market. Unfortunately, the oversized compressors employed in such appliances require 220-volt power, thereby requiring an establishment to install a dedicated power line. In addition, in order for them to achieve their high cooling rates, food must be placed in comparatively shallow, low volume, 2.5-inch deep pans.
Another typical approach for quickly chilling large quantities of food include the use of ice wands or bottles filled with frozen water. Their employment is fairly labor intensive, as they must be frequently used to stir the contents of the pans or vessels of foods in question to ensure a consistent reduction in temperature. They must also be frequently replaced with fresh units and must be refrozen in an establishment's generally crowded freezer. Also, the plastic wands or bottles are known to crack and break and thereby exposing the food to the bare ice.
This invention, therefore, seeks to overcome the problems and disadvantages observed in commercial kitchens by providing a portable, efficient system that lends itself to the relatively quick chilling of large quantities of hot foods such as sauces, gravies, stews and the like.